Leveraging Serendipity to Overcome Creative Blocks
When creativity stalls, deliberately introducing randomness—through unplanned actions, new experiences, or surrendering to unpredictability—can spark fresh ideas and break through impasses, especially in fiction writing.
THE IDEA
Introducing Variety into Creative Work
Jane Smiley, in 13 Ways of Looking at the Novel, describes inspiration arising from “half-attentive ruminations” during ordinary tasks. When a draft stalls, entering a “zone of randomness” can mean trying something the plan did not anticipate and seeing what it reveals.
A writer might draft an unplanned scene, visit a setting, examine original documents, or pay closer attention to everyday encounters. The scene may later be cut; its value may be what the writer learns about a character. Research can also overturn an assumption or bring a minor character into greater focus.
Smiley’s discussion connects writing with the particular experiences a novelist brings to it. Defoe’s Nonconformist background, for example, gave him an interest in people often excluded from conventional accounts. Another writer’s background will offer different material.
These approaches create more material to work with. They leave room for revision and for a finished story to differ from its initial plan. The idea of a “perfect” novel is limited by the choices fiction requires: choosing one story’s details necessarily excludes others. A draft need not deliver every possible pleasure to be worth continuing.
When to use it
A novelist mid-draft who can’t decide the next scene deliberately writes a surprising, out-of-character moment for the protagonist to see where it leads.
A songwriter visits an unfamiliar neighborhood and notes sounds and scenes that could provide material for lyrics.
A visual artist stuck on a series begins incorporating found objects from a random walk into their work, sparking an entirely new direction.
A product designer visits another industry’s trade show to examine how its tools or processes might address a design problem.
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Smiley’s Unplanned Scene
While writing a novel, Jane Smiley felt stuck. Instead of meticulously planning, she wrote a scene she hadn’t outlined, letting her characters act unexpectedly. Although she later cut the scene, it revealed new aspects of the characters that helped sustain momentum.
Defoe’s Life as Random Input
Daniel Defoe’s Nonconformist upbringing exposed him to people often ignored by literature—prostitutes, servants, criminals. That background, essentially a random factor of his biography, gave him a wellspring of material for novels like Robinson Crusoe, showing how personal history can inject serendipitous inspiration.
Overcoming Boredom Through New Experiences
Smiley suggests seeking fresh material when a story becomes boring: visit its setting, read primary sources, or notice sensory details that the draft has overlooked. These activities give the writer something new to consider.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
Recall a time when an unexpected event or detour led to a creative breakthrough. How can you recreate that openness to randomness?
If you’re currently stuck on a project, what one new, unplanned experience (e.g., a walk in an unfamiliar place, reading something outside your field) could you introduce today?
In what ways might your own life background contain overlooked ‘random’ material that could enrich your creative work?
References
- 13 Ways of Looking at the Novel — Jane Smiley (2005)
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- The Great Mental Models Volume 3 Systems and Mathematics